Tag Archives: home fashion

I had this chair lying around in disrepair. The loose seat needed screws, and the cushion wore a tragic 80’s country colonial hell fabric.

Still solid and sturdy, this chair just needed a new sexy outfit. Unscrew the seat and remove. Gather a substantial stapler, staples, and scissors. “Know your colors and know your fabrics. That’s what I tell all my little girls.” Cut your fabric with enough extra to staple, but not so much it covers the screw holes. Staple that bitch. Screw her back together. Flip her right side up and admire the transformation.

Dark, rich, printed fabrics are more forgiving for slobs like me. I purchased 3/4 of a yard and had quite a bit left over intentionally. Buy enough that you can arrange the print on the cushion as you like it.

I hate you IKEA because you smell funny. I blame the restaurant. The Swedes are not known for their cuisine. A fellow patron spilled one of those ligonberry drinks and I watched as it penetrated the polished concrete floor like battery acid. I want to throw a Swedish meatball at your stadium-sized head IKEA. I hate you IKEA because you seduce me with your displays. While walking through the showroom, it all looks like Oz. When your resolve has weakened and you are ready to drop your panties for that $199 dresser, follow the yellow brick road down to the warehouse and pull back the curtain to find a sea of gray, bleak cardboard, and overwhelming confusion stacked from floor to ceiling. I hate you IKEA because you are still the most affordable option for semi-stylish home furnishings. What makes IKEA a hassle is what makes IKEA cheap. I hate you IKEA because you make your employees wear the ugliest shirts ever made. Are you furniture referees? Lemme get you a whistle and maybe you can wrangle some of these deranged children out of the way.I hate you IKEA because you assign homework. I have to put this thing together now? My friend Trish hired some dude off Craigslist to put all her IKEA furniture together – assembling shitty pre-fab furniture is a cottage industry. Skills for life, people. Skills for life.

Some of the filthiest and most difficult areas to clean are the bends, folds, and bolts of the toilet. I confess, I hate cleaning this area so much. It feels like no matter how many times I go over it, I uncover more dust, dirt, hair, and grime. Why is it a harbor for mystery pubes? So gross. Truly, it is one of my most despised cleaning tasks. When I remodeled recently, I opted for a smooth-sided toilet. The shape eliminates all those little areas where disgusting funk collects. With this style commode, a good once or twice over and the gunk is gone. Smooth-sided toilets are a skosh more expensive than the cheapest entry-level traditional style thrones, but how many toilets are you going to buy in your life? When considering the number of times you will perch here as well as the frequent cleanings, it makes sense to spring for the modern smooth-sided one piece.

After some healthy snowfall, I stayed in today and spent several hours organizing. As much as staring at a heap of clutter induces anxiety, cleaning up the mess feels equally, if not more, stress relieving.Today I focused on the office. To the extent I can, I try and go paperless, for the trees and to reduce the management of physical paperwork. However, one cannot transact all biz electronically. Set up a home filing system so you have a place to put the records that must be kept. Deal with paper as it comes in by sorting it into categories for recycling, shredding, requiring action, and filing. Invest in a filing cabinet. Document storage furniture can be pricey new, but there are always an abundance of options on craigslist and 2nd hand stores that are more economical. If you do want to spring for a new one, these from CB2 are pretty enjoyable.

Want to make a late correction to today’s post. I believe I may have misidentified the shop where I bought my dress as Flutter Clutter when it is in fact called Eden. Eden has a website at edenportland.com. I’m going to leave information on the sister shops in this post because both are worthy of attention, but to be clear, Eden is the extra cute store where I bought my reasonably-priced reworked vintage. I wholeheartedly apologize for any confusion. There is just so much sweetness in Portland, it is hard to keep it all straight. Stumbled upon a darling shop in rosy Portland today called Eden. I was drawn in by a rack of adorable dresses outside the store and made my way in to discover a number of unique treasures. Eden stocks all sorts of fun, like quirky found items, granny’s thrift store dresses reworked into modern shapes, souped-up vintage furs and lingerie, delicious perfumes, books, cards, cute tid-bits, and whimsical what-nots. Often when I stumble across a store of this nature, it is full of sweetness, but the prices are astronomically bitter. Not at Eden; their special finds are priced to move. How does $52 for a one-of-a-kind frock sound? Sounds totally reasonable to me, so I picked one up. Check out both websites flutterclutter.com and edenportland.com; the online inventory is more limited than the in-person browsing experience, but you can get a taste of their eclectic offerings. Enjoy free shipping on orders exceeding $100. This shop is well worth a look and full of intriguing gift ideas.

Famished from shopping, sustenance shifted to the priority. Prasad answered the prayer of our longing tummies. Vegan, wholesome, and delicious, Prasad provided us a hearty meal we devoured with a smugness that comes with consuming only the healthiest and guilt-free dishes. With fresh-squeezed juice and a protein-packed salad followed by a soothing peppermint tea, we left refreshed from our weary travels. Portlanders keep a number of vegetarian restaurants and food trucks thriving, and Prasad is a standout among them. Prasad shares space with a yoga studio – Yoga Pearl. Didn’t get a chance to take a class, but yoga + a delicious vegan lunch sounds like a fantastic afternoon to me – a great concept for a shared space that is well-executed. Leave it to Portland to get it right.

Usually the back and bottom cushion covers unzip. Maybe this is a good time to slip them in the wash? Whether you launder the covers or not, unzip and pop some extra batting or even an old pillow in there for some extra support. I just brought a chaise back to life with a queen size pillow. You’d be surprised how much you can fit in there and how the extra filling adds comfort to beatdown furniture. It’s a cheap fix with satisfyingly instant and noticeable results.

A Lacroix gown may be out of reach for most of us, but we can still bring a bit of couture home with his exquisite journal set. The colorful and ornate collection contains four books: two lined, two unlined. These elegant journals make a luxurious and chic gift, and at $23, it is one you can afford to give.